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Li et al. report a spatially decoupled heavy atom antenna strategy by integrating alkyl bromides into a hybridized local and charge-transfer scaffold, originated from benzothiadiazole acceptors, to create an organic scintillator with a short radiative lifetime of 3.42 ns and spatial resolution around 50 lp mm^-1.

Kinks are topological solitons and central to many physical systems. Here, the authors experimentally demonstrate control and generation of zero-energy kinks in a topological mechanical metamaterial via acoustic waves and numerically show rich acoustic-wavekink dynamics in highly discrete systems.

The authors create a room-temperature super relaxor critical state in a lead-free ceramic, delivering dual-high recoverable energy density and efficiency by residing at a crossover between dynamic and static/frozen polar states.

CRISPR-Cas12a diagnostics are limited by strict PAM requirements. Here, authors show that higher temperatures activate numerous noncanonical PAMs, enabling a versatile one-pot platform that improves sensitivity, specificity, and rapid on-site pathogen detection.

The integration of high-κ dielectrics with low equivalent oxide thickness (EOT) is crucial for the development of 2D transistors. Here, the authors report the low-temperature fabrication of wafer-scale HfO₂ dielectric films with sub-5-Å EOT and their application for the realization of high-performance 2D MoS₂ transistors and circuits.

Genomic and phenomic screens of 827 wheat landraces from the A. E. Watkins collection provide insight into the wheat population genetic background, unlocking many agronomic traits and revealing haplotypes that could potentially be used to improve modern wheat cultivars.

Interfacial modifications between perovskite and charge transport layers based on physical adsorption are susceptible to detachment. Here, authors report a chemical modification with in-situ crosslinking reaction in the modifiers, achieving certified efficiency of over 25% in perovskite solar cells.

Gelsamine is a naturally occurring alkaloid, whose complex structure makes it an interesting target for total synthesis. Here, the authors report an enantioselective synthesis of (+)-Gelsemine in 5% overall yield, with an enantioselective organocatalytic Diels–Alder reaction as one of the key steps.

It is uncertain how much life expectancy of the Chinese population would improve under current and greater policy targets on lifestyle-based risk factors for chronic diseases and mortality behaviours. Here we report a simulation of how improvements in four risk factors, namely smoking, alcohol use, physical activity and diet, could affect mortality. We show that in the ideal scenario, that is, all people who currently smokers quit smoking, excessive alcohol userswas reduced to moderate intake, people under 65 increased moderate physical activity by one hour and those aged 65 and older increased by half an hour per day, and all participants ate 200 g more fresh fruits and 50 g more fish/seafood per day, life expectancy at age 30 would increase by 4.83 and 5.39 years for men and women, respectively. In a more moderate risk reduction scenario referred to as the practical scenario, where improvements in each lifestyle factor were approximately halved, the gains in life expectancy at age 30 could be half those of the ideal scenario. However, the validity of these estimates in practise may be influenced by population-wide adherence to lifestyle recommendations. Our findings suggest that the current policy targets set by the Healthy China Initiative could be adjusted dynamically, and a greater increase in life expectancy would be achieved.

Isolated attosecond pulses are produced using high harmonic generation and sources of these pulses often suffer from low photon flux in soft X-ray regime. Here the authors demonstrate efficient generation and characterization of 53 as pulses with photon energy near the water window.

Nie et al. report a multi-site binding ligand to suppress the formation of defects and increase the structural and water stability of perovskites. Solar cells fabricated fully in air achieves an efficiency of 25.03% and retain 98.98% of the performance after aging in air for 1,584 h without encapsulation.

Neural circuit mechanisms that regulate the panic-like defensive state are not fully understood. Using a robot-based experimental paradigm, the authors identify Cbln2-expressing (Cbln2+) neurons in the mouse posterior hypothalamic nucleus (PHN) as a key neuronal population essential for the induction of panic-like defensive state.

Advances have been made in thin-film piezoelectrics; however, the linearity of electric-field-induced strain with frequency and temperature still requires improvement. Here, by growing interlocked monoclinic and tetragonal polar nanoregions in (K,Na)NbO₃ thin films, highly linear strains of up to 1.1% are reported at frequencies up to 10⁵ Hz.

The authors propose passive linear edge states based on spin-momentum locking of Rayleigh waves in 2D media in the limit of zero bulk to shear modulus ratio, that give backscattering-free propagation immune to edge roughness with no frequency limitation.

Existing photo-controlled CRISPR diagnostic methods suffer from limited universality, high cost, and low detection efficiency. Here, the authors develop a photo-caging strategy designed for the direct repeat (DR) region of Cas12a crRNA, enabling a broadly applicable one-pot detection platform

Previous studies have suggested that branched chain amino acids (BCAA) may contribute to the development of diabetic kidney disease (DKD).Here the authors report that genetic disruption of BCAA catabolism in podocytes or exogenous BCAA supplementation can trigger DKD initiation via rewiring of glucose metabolism in mice.

Significant progress has been made in the field of CRISPR diagnostics, but it is still challenging to achieve multiplexed detection. Here authors exploit CRISPR-Cas12a cis-cleavage to develop a multiplexed assay which includes a portable device incorporating multiplexed PCR, Cas12a cis-cleavage, and lateral flow detection.

Lewis acid additive semicarbazide hydrochloride improves the formation of α-phase FAPbI₃-based films and promotes a homogeneous vertical distribution of A-site cations through a deprotonation–reprotonation process. The upgraded device performance reaches up to 26.12% with high stability, and mini-module perovskite solar cells achieving 21.47% (area, 11.52 cm²) demonstrate great scalability.

The authors demonstrate a chemopiezoelectric effect in which the displacive migration of oxygen vacancies driven by an electric field induces a large strain in the surface layer of thin (K,Na)NbO₃ ceramics. They achieve an electrostrain of 1.9% under a field of −3 kV mm⁻¹, with thermal stability up to 200 °C.

In this study, the authors isolated and characterized neutralizing antibodies from vaccinated individuals with SARS-CoV-2 BA.1 breakthrough infection and show that elite antibodies derived from specific germlines provide potent pan-variant neutralization capacity and in vivo protection.

In this Perspective, members of the Aging Biomarker Consortium outline the X-Age Project, an Aging Biomarker Consortium plan for building standardized aging clocks in China. The authors discuss the project roadmap and its aims of decoding aging heterogeneity, detecting accelerated aging early and evaluating geroprotective interventions.

Shao et al. developed an MRI–pathology-based foundation model to assess the pathology of prostate cancer for diagnosis and grading of tumors. The model is noninvasive and outperforms current pathological assessments.

Electronic wound bandages have to balance conformability and wound healing properties. Here, the authors develop a smart patch (iSAFE) using biomaterials with bioelectronics to facilitate permeability with waterproofing. This achieves intelligent wound management with real-time wound monitoring and active therapy.

Maintaining yield under environmental stresses is a long-standing but challenging goal of rice breeding. Here, the authors report a MYB transcription factor encoding gene GL12 from wild rice can improve grain length and salt tolerance in cultivated rice and the identification of its upstream regulators GIF1 and WRKY53.

Yang et al. show that transcription–replication collisions lead to large tandem duplications, which are frequent in female-enriched, upper gastrointestinal tract and prostate cancers and are associated with poor survival and mutations in specific genes, such as CDK12.

Orzya meridionalis is a wild rice species that has reproductive isolation with Asian cultivated rice. Here, the authors report the cloning of the second locus controlling hybrid male sterility between the two species and show the encoded toxin-antidote system provides stacked reproductive isolation for maintaining species identity.

The performance of inorganic, wide-bandgap perovskite solar cells is hindered by unsuitable electron transport layers. Han et al. design an acidic magnesium-doped tin oxide quantum dot layer, improving efficiency and stability in single-junction and tandem cells.

Many thrombolytic agents depend on plasminogen, leading to D-dimer accumulation. Here, Tang et al. report a plasminogen-independent thrombolytic enzyme that degrades blood clots and D-dimer without plasminogen.

The immunomodulatory functions of mast cells (MCs) within the tumor microenvironment are elusive. Here, the authors present a transcriptomic characterization of LUAD-infiltrating MCs and identify a proinflammatory subset that contributes to the activation of cytotoxic MAIT cells by secreting IL-18 via NRLP3 activation and pyroptosis, ultimately boosting anti-tumor immunity.

The immune-checkpoint molecule TIM-3 regulates microglial homeostasis, and its microglial-specific deletion reduced cognitive impairment in a mouse model of Alzheimer’s disease.

The freshwater planarian S. mediterranea is an important model organism for regeneration research but its use in aging research is little explored and S. mediterranea is commonly referred to as immortal. Here Dai et al. report age-associated physiological and molecular changes in the sexual lineage of S. mediterranea, and global reversal of such changes after regeneration.

Technical advancements have significantly improved early diagnosis of cervical cancer, but accurate diagnosis is still difficult due to various practical factors. Here, the authors develop an artificial intelligence assistive diagnostic solution to improve cervical liquid-based thin-layer cell smear diagnosis according to clinical TBS criteria in a large multicenter study.

The authors induce a phase boundary similar to Pb(Zr, Ti)O₃’s morphotropic phase boundary structure in (K, Na)NbO₃-based ceramics, which exhibit high residual polarization as well as a significantly improved piezoelectric constant d₃₃.

Genetic bases of grain shape differentiation between the two subspecies of Asian cultivated rice have not been fully elucidated. Here, the authors report GSE9, a de novo gene evolved from a non-coding region of wild rice through acquisition of start codon, contributes to the grain shape difference between the two subspecies.

Expression of MIR159 is attenuated by a MYB73/TPL/HDA19 repression complex during rose petal development. Reduced MIR159 levels lead to accumulation of Cytokinin Oxidase 6, causing cytokinin clearance and subsequent arrest of cell division.

The stability of perovskite tandem solar cells is an issue. Li et al. show that diamines improve the compositional homogeneity of a low-bandgap perovskite surface and form a low-dimensional barrier that passivates defects, leading to an operational stability of over 1,000 h.

This study reports the genomic changes underlying the convergent and divergent agronomic improvement of the female and male heterotic groups during modern hybrid maize breeding, laying a foundation for the dissection and utilization of maize heterosis.

Materials with Weyl cones and band gaps coexisting are desired due to their combination of Weyl cones and the tunable and controllable nature of semiconductor. Here, the authors find Weyl-related band structures and semiconducting gap of tellurium.

Designing efficient on-skin devices with minimal sensory interference remains challenging. Here, Zhang et al. develop versatile electrospun micropyramid array-based on-skin devices, achieving both imperceptibility and high performances in pressure sensing, radiative cooling, and bioenergy harvesting.

CAR-T cell therapies targeting BCMA have shown promising responses in patients with multiple myeloma (MM), however primary resistance and relapse are frequently observed. Here the authors report the results of a phase I//II study of bispecific CAR T-cells targeting BCMA and CD19 in relapsed/refractory MM.

The role of intragrain planar defects in halide perovskite solar cell devices remains elusive. Now, Li et al. tune the composition of the perovskite layer to minimize the planar defect density and observe an improvement in the device performance.

In Klinefelter syndrome, gene dysregulation due to the extra X chromosome leads to delayed development of fetal germ cells (FGCs), and aberrant interactions between Sertoli cells and FGCs disrupt the migration of late FGCs to the basement membrane.

The APOE4 allele is a major genetic risk factor for the development of late-onset Alzheimer’s disease (AD). In this manuscript, Butovsky and colleagues suggest that APOE4 impairs the microglial response in AD by inducing TGFβ-mediated checkpoints.

Fibroadenoma occurrence is linked to increased long-term risk of breast carcinoma, however, the lack of models has made understanding this mechanism unclear. Here, the authors use single cell RNA-seq to identify dysregulation of epithelial cells and develop organoid models to study treatment resistance.

Genetic variation present in wild rice is a reservoir of useful genes for rice breeding. Here, the authors report the haplotype-resolved gapless genome assembly of wild rice, the development of two sets of chromosome segment substitution lines, and the cloning of a blast resistance gene originated from wild rice.

In China, forest thinning combined with wood storage is projected to increase forest biomass carbon sink by 32 percent by 2060 under the high and medium emission scenarios, according to an analysis combining machine learning, meteorological, biomass data, and climate projections.